Health and Safety Official Loses Nuclear Plant Secrets
The UK government has experienced a degree of embarrassment over recent health and safety audits conducted by a health and safety official. A stress test report was created from the audit as to the weaknesses the Hartlepool plant may have. The information was downloaded illicitly onto a USB memory stick. The stick has now been lost. The official was in India with the information at a nuclear conference.
The details included a technical explanation and maps of the power station. The information is highly sensitive because it could be misused in the wrong hands. If the nuclear power plant was to be infiltrated, a large disaster could strike the UK.
Officials are hoping that this is not the case and that the information will not find its way to the wrong hands. The individual responsible was an HSE senior inspector who should have been more careful than to mislay or lose such sensitive information. The USB stick has no encryption. This is not permitted with such classified information.
Action has been taken by the HSE about the inspector’s mistake, but the inspector is not willing to share what that action is. It could be that his job will be lost considering the seriousness of the matter. This is not the only issue such as this to occur in recent years. There have been other data losses that were revealed by David Cameron and Nicolas Sarkozy, the French President. The two are working on safety initiatives to help stop such losses.
